What Is BuddhIsm The religion based on the teachings of the Buddha is known as Buddhism The Buddha was born Siddhartha Gautama in what is now Nepal sometime in the sixth to the fourth century BCE about 2,500 years ago He became enlightened and found a Vocabulary In Buddhism to be enlightened is to reach a state of total freedom from unhappiness and suffering Buddhism is based on the teachings of the Buddha who lived sometime in the sixth to fourth century BCE in Nepal 4
Buddhism has many followers around the world Buddhist temples and practices vary by region This temple is in Japan where many people practice Buddhism way to free himself from the cycle of desire and suffering that all living beings experience The Buddha taught his followers how to achieve this too Buddhism began in India and spread to central and southeastern Asia China Korea and Japan Today Buddhism is the fourth-largest religion in the world with about five hundred million followers Followers of Buddhism are called Buddhists 5
BelIefs There is no single sacred book of Buddhism but all Buddhists share beliefs based on the teachings of the Buddha The Buddha’s teachings are called the Four Noble Truths The first truth is that life is made up of pain and suffering all living things experience sickness old age and death The second truth is that this suffering is caused by a person’s selfish desires or wants The third truth is that people can be free of these desires The fourth truth is that the way to overcome Buddhists believe that by following the Buddha’s teachings they can overcome pain and suffering just like the Buddha was able to do 6
This painting represents the Buddhist idea of samsara or the cycle of life death and rebirth pain and suffering is through the Eightfold Path Buddhists believe in the idea of reincarnation or rebirth This cycle of birth death and rebirth is called samsara Think About It Can you think of a time when you got something you wanted but you felt unhappy anyway Why do you think you felt unhappy 7
